Eric and I met in November of 2010. I was visiting home from school in Madison, and I went to a party at his house with a few friends. While we knew of each other from high school, we had never properly met. Little did I know that his mom had recently given him the advice of finding a liberal girlfriend -- "one from the College Democrats." When I put on my coat to leave for the night, Eric saw my College Dem buttons, knelt down and "proposed." After convincing me that it would be worthwhile to start a long-distance relationship, Eric and I officially started dating that Christmas. Over the course of 7 years, I've spent three in Madison, one in London, and the last three building a life together in Minnesota. When we decided to make this thing official, there were only a few things that really mattered to us. 1. Having our closest family and friends in attendance. 2. Having an epic party. When you add in how much we both love traveling and Hawai'i, it only made sense to get married on the Big Island! What more could you ask for than celebrating with your loved ones in paradise? We are so thankful to everyone willing to make the sacrifices to be there with us.